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Leon Draisaitl
| birth_place = Cologne, Germany | draft = 3rd overall | draft_team = Edmonton Oilers | draft_year = 2014 | career_start = 2014 }} Leon Draisaitl (born on October 27, 1995) is a German ice hockey forward, currently playing for the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League (NHL). Playing Career Before moving to North America to continue his playing career, Leon spent the 2011–12 season in the German Development League (DNL) with the Jungadler Mannheim U18 team, leading his team to capture the DNL Championship. He was recognized for his outstanding performance by being named the DNL Player of the Year. Kelowna Rockets Following two seasons playing with the Prince Albert Raiders, Leon was traded to the Kelowna Rockets during the 2015 World Junior Championships, and the trade was made official on January 5, 2015. He would help the Rockets to the 2015 WHL Championship, where he would be named playoff MVP, putting up 28 points in 19 games. He won the Stafford Smythe Trophy as Memorial Cup MVP the same year, although the Rockets did not win the Memorial cup, losing the championship final in overtime 2–1 to the Oshawa Generals. Edmonton Oilers Leon was drafted third overall in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft by the Edmonton Oilers, making him the highest drafted German-trained player in NHL history (Dany Heatley, who was selected second overall in 2000, was born in Germany but raised in Canada). On August 12, 2014, the Oilers signed him to a three-year entry level contract. After making the Oilers team out of training camp, Leon made his NHL debut on October 9, 2014 against the Calgary Flames. On October 24, 2014, he scored his first NHL goal against Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Anton Khudobin on October 24, 2014. Leon would appear in 37 games for the Oilers during the 2014–15 season, recording two goals and four assists, before being sent back to the Prince Albert Raiders. The move was done in part to prevent his contract from moving one year closer to free agency (he would have been counted if he was on the team's roster after 40 games). On April 6, 2016, he scored the final NHL goal ever at Rexall Place in a 6–2 Oilers win over the Vancouver Canucks. On March 23, 2017, Leon became the first Oiler player since 1990 to have 6 straight multi point games. He holds the record for most points in a season by a German hockey player with 77 in 2016–17 with the Oilers, starring on a line with Connor McDavid and Patrick Maroon. On May 7, 2017, in Round 2, Game 6 of the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Leon scored a hat trick, becoming the first Edmonton Oilers player to record a playoff hat trick since Bill Guerin on April 18, 2000. Career Statistics Regular season and playoffs International International Play Leon represents Germany internationally. He played in the World Junior Championships in 2013 and 2014. He served as the German team captain at the 2014 tournament. He was ejected from a round-robin game against the American team after a hit from behind and was later assessed a one-game suspension. Leon was named to the Germany men's national ice hockey team for competition at the 2014 IIHF World Championship. Accolades Category:1995 births Category:Edmonton Oilers draft picks Category:Edmonton Oilers players Category:German ice hockey players Category:Prince Albert Raiders players Category:Kelowna Rockets alumni Category:Bakersfield Condors players